The Warner sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1885-1???, 1887-08-12
THE LATE BEN
incidents OF Early Stage-Coach Days
in Colorado.

Incidents OF Early aGe-CoaChD Days
in Colorado.
There is much that is remarkable in
Ben Hollsday's history, says a Denver
paper, and a great deal that is of inter-
est TO Coloradoans. as Mr.. HOlladay is
he man who brought the first stage
coach to Denver and occupied very
much the some rank in the early days
hat railroad pre-. dents occupy now.
Ben Holiday was bluff old fellow,
rery hearty with his friends and very
blunt with those not fortunate enough
o have secured his good will. Ee had
many OF the eccentr cities which seem
o be natural with rich men whose
careers have sprung from small begin
2ings. He could be very arbitrary with
ais employees if the tit seized him, and
again he could requite q favor in a
generous. whole-souled fashion which
made him a lion among these by whom
ae was reared. He was one of those
men who seem to take a grim delight
IN surprising people and who do the
most unexpected things at the most I'M
expected moments. He was often
lffable and occasionally he was beariSh,
Just as all men are who are as heavily
Ourdened with business cares as he
was.
Like most of his class, he was a bold
speculator, and would take almost any
risk where he thought there was a
chance of making anything. Alto
gether, those who knew Mr.. Holiday
IN Denver in the early days remember
him as a kindly, eccentric man, fond of
joke, and always willing to help along
any worthy public scheme.
1t is concluded, however, by those
who knew him best, although there
was much that was remarkable in Ben
Holidays history, there was little that
was in itself remarkable about the man.
The greatness in which riches enVelop
a man a srather thrust upon him than
otherwise. He began his career in a
most propitious time for men to make
money. He was so situated that he
had every opportunity to make it and
his would have been a densely stupid
mental orgaims indeed had he not fol-
lowed up his advantage as far as it led
aim
1t is claimed that two men largely
identified with the early interests of
the new west were the making of Ben
Holiday; that they simply put the
plastic clay into his hands. that he had
intelligence enough to slould it and
fashion from it a thing that brought
him monumental wealth in DAYS to
come. That he failed to keep these
enormous sums of money, and that he
became in time almost utterly bank
rupt only serves to demonstrate the
fact that the spirit Of the age had taken
possession of him.
He was a genius and a ~benefactor,
inasmuch as he was progressive. 1t
can not be said of him that his vast
sums of money were allowed to lie and
rust unused. The millions that he
once owned were kept in active cir
culation, and for that reason the world
Is better that Ben Holiday was once a
rich mar.
There are those, perhaps, who win
bear some yet tenderer memories of
this erstwhile hero of the famous Over
land stage line. Little is now known
in Denver Of Ben HolladaY's family
relations, which may have been some
what broken up when, some years ago,
Mrs. Holiday went to Europe to re-
side with Ter two daughters. whom she
married to German counts after the
most approved fashion, which even the
wives Of the bonanza kings Of the pres
emit day cannot excel. Mrs. Holiday
is said to have Queened it for q time in
Europe, Just as Mrs. Mackay does to-
day, but her Judgment in the matter of
the choice of titled husbands for her
daughters proved but .ill-advised, as
both Ben Holladay's daughters died of
broken hearts, their royal husbands
proving little more than fortune seek
ers. AT one time Holiday brought his
a~ristocratic sons-in-law to America and
gave them employment but this
proved rather an unsatisfactory pro-
ceeding, and it is thought that the old
man was glad enough to pay their pas
sage back to- Germany in order to get
rid of them.
Years ago Ben HGlladay kept a little
grocery store in western Missouri In
fact, it is claimed by some that 1t was
not groceries which he sold, but bad
Missouri whisky. However this may
have beer, HcLladay was a good-natur-
ed, ordinary kied Of country merchant
whom everybody liked and who was
not a bad fellow By any means. In the
year 1853 circumstances and the voice
ri q friend called him further west, and
be soon became concerned in the govern
ment purchases OF hour, which was to
supply Johnson's army at Fort Bridges
ID the days Of the Mormon war. Here
10 made large sums Of money BY buy